A gentleman treats people well at work and at home.

– Oscar de la Renta, designer

Squirt and I just did his first Math homework and he kicked that Math homework's ass. #d—
John Rodriguez (@squirtsdad) May 24, 2012

As he got out of bed this morning, Squirt, went straight for his writing desk and started to write on his chalkboard. #prouddad #d—
John Rodriguez (@squirtsdad) May 23, 2012

Always look at your buddy’s girlfriend/wife as a sister. She can be a good looking sister, but still a sister.

– Love Dad

Last thing my son says to his mom last night before he goes to sleep is that he wants a brother. #bestwingmanever #d—
John Rodriguez (@squirtsdad) May 22, 2012

Don’t make purchases you can’t afford, period.

– Love Dad

This was all his idea.  I think he looks awesome and he’s been getting lots of compliments.

The Ugly Duckling is a book he had on his reading list for some time but we had never gotten around to reading it.  He got cozy next to me with his usual bedtime hot coco and I started to read to him.  He’s actually very good as sitting still for a story and interrupts only a few times to comment on the pictures.

Unfortunately, he still didn’t want to go to sleep after the book and he talked his mom into ten more minutes of TV.  You win some and you lose some right?  Nevertheless, it was nice to see him opt for a book instead of the TV.

No one ever looks cool sporting a barely-there mustache, beard or goatee at puberty.  Shave it.  You can give it another shot when you’re about twenty-five years old.  Sporting that coveted day-old-stubble look should be no problem by then.

– Love Dad

Lately, I’ve been taking my 5 year old son biking and it’s proving to be some awesome quality time.  He has been unstoppable on a bike since he learned to ride a couple years ago.  Of course, I can’t keep up with him on foot so I had to pull my old bike out of retirement from my parents house.

We usually go to the park, it has a sidewalk all the way around it and a couple through the middle so we play follow the leader on bikes with him in the lead.  He’s an expert at taking corners full speed, slamming on the brakes and skidding around the corner.  He calls it drifting.  He was pleasantly surprised to see that I could pull off that stunt too *popping my collar*.

We chat while we take water breaks and plan our next course through the park.  Sometimes, he makes quick friends with other kids riding bikes and our activity turns into a larger game of follow the leader.   We usually stay out until it just starts to get dark because its fun, and we don’t want to be on the streets on bikes in the dark.  That’s just not safe.

Some of my favorite childhood memories with my dad are the times he would take my brother and I on hiking trips.  I plan to keep up these biking outings for many years to come and hopefully, when Squirt’s older, he will remember these times too.  As for me, I enjoy the exercise, I love the quality time and I will definitely remember these times as some of my favorites.